Saudi relief group turns over keys of 2,700 houses to Pakistani families

March 29, 2008

The Saudi Public Assistance for Pakistan Earthquake Victims (SPAPEV) has
handed over to Pakistani families the keys to 2,700 prefabricated houses that
were built as part of Saudi Arabia’s aid to victims of the October 2005
earthquake.

A $16.7 million contract was signed to construct 4,000 houses in Balakot,
North-West Frontier Province in October 2006. Construction is underway on the
remaining 1,300 houses and they are expected to be completed very soon, SPAPEV
Media Director Ibrahim Homaily said recently.

SPAPEV also signed a $5.1 million contract to build 1,000 prefabricated
houses in Bagh, Azad Kashmir for victims of the quake. That project is expected
to begin soon, Homaily said.
In addition to the houses, SPAPEV plans to
construct 30 secondary schools in the Bagh and Balakot areas as well as 30 large
mosques and 90 small mosques.

SPAPEV is supervised by Minister of Interior Prince Nayef bin Abdulaziz. It
operates under the directives of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah
bin Abdulaziz.

It has provided $2 million each to UNICEF and the World Food Program (WFP),
and $700,000 to the READ Foundation. It has also handed over relief aid worth
millions to international organizations such as the International Islamic Relief
Organization.

After the deadly 2005 earthquake devastated regions of Pakistan, Saudi Arabia
was the single largest donor to relief efforts with aid in excess of $573
million.